Giant miscalculation

NFC CHAMPIONSHIP: GIANTS AT PACKERS

Running back Ryan Grant was dealt by New York to Green Bay for a 6th-round pick.

January 20, 2008|By Chris Harry, Sentinel Staff Writer

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- When the deal was consummated last September, it barely registered a blip on the NFL's transaction wire.

Four months later, the fallout could be super-seismic.

Make that, Super Bowl seismic.

Just days before the start of the 2007 season, the New York Giants had a logjam at running back and the Green Bay Packers knew it. When the Packers called and offered a seventh-round pick to take third-year pro Ryan Grant off their hands, the Giants declined.

They held out for a sixth-rounder, instead.

Last week, New York General Manager Jerry Reese called the trade a "win-win situation" for both teams.

And while no one knows what that sixth-round pick will yield next April for the Giants, the NFL world knows that Grant rushed for 201 yards and three touchdowns in the snow last week and has his team on destiny's doorstep.

Against some of his best buddies, as it turned out.

"It's the stage you want," Grant said last week. "You can't ask for anything better."

Brett Favre may be back in the national spotlight, but for his rousing comeback story to continue the Packers (14-3) likely will look for more giant things from their former Giant against the Giants (13-5) in tonight's NFC Championship Game in the famous icebox of sold-out Lambeau Field.

At stake is merely a berth in Super Bowl XLII, set for Feb. 3 in Glendale, Ariz.

"Win-win" situations won't apply.

"Trust me, I'm upset Ryan Grant is not with us. He's a bull and we have our work cut out to stop him," said defensive end Michael Strahan, whose defense surrendered 154 yards on the ground in a divisional win at Dallas last week. "He's probably licking his chops to have an opportunity against his former team. He's one of those guys where you think, 'We let one go.' "

But who could have known?

Heading into the season, the Giants weren't sure what to think about their running game after all-time rushing leader Tiki Barber retired following the '06 season. Brandon Jacobs was the heir apparent, but the team also acquired veteran Reuben Droughns and was counting on situational yards from Derrick Ward and rookie Ahmad Bradshaw. There was no shortage of candidates.

Meanwhile, Grant went undrafted out of Notre Dame in '05 and chose to sign with the Giants because he grew up cheering for the team about a half-hour away in Nanuet, N.Y.

Grant spent his rookie year on the practice squad and '06 on the non-football injury list after nearly bleeding to death when he slipped and fell through a glass table, severing an artery, nerve and tendon in his arm.

That he was able to come back and rush 10 times for 90 yards and a touchdown in the '07 preseason gained the admiration of his teammates and made him a clubhouse favorite.

"I was one of his biggest fans," recalled Giants wide receiver Amani Toomer. "A lot of guys in the NFL have ability, but just don't get a chance."

It took Grant a while to get his in Green Bay, too.

The Packers went into the season planning on rookies Brandon Jackson (second-round pick) and DeShawn Wynn (seventh-round from Florida) to be their featured backs, and merely acquired Grant for depth purposes.

Twenty-two carries and 104 yards later, the Packers had their starting tailback.

"He's been huge," Favre said.

The 6-foot-1, 224-pounder rushed for 929 yards and eight touchdowns the final 10 games, turning the Packers questionable ground attack into a strength and making Favre all the more dangerous in the pocket.

By carrying 27-carry, 201-yard eruption against Seattle last week was a record for the storied Packers in the postseason.

Hornung.

Taylor.

Grant.

"I appreciate the comparisons," he said. "But I haven't done that much yet."

It's been enough to help the Packers back to their first NFC title game in 10 years.

And enough maybe to make the Giants look back with some regret, right?